Tag: email security

You’ve probably seen at least one, an email telling you that a $XX,XXX payment is about to go in to your bank or Paypal account — but ONLY!! if you confirm your address. And your name. And your dog’s name. And your Social Security number. And your dog’s Social Security number.

They want you to click a link or fill out a form to verify information

Misspellings and poor grammar

Call you ‘valued customer’ instead of your actual name

Email sent from a weird email address

When you hover (DON’T CLICK!) over links in an email, the URLs are a little ‘off’

If you see an email that appears to be a phishing attempt, the best thing you can do is NOT do what they tell you (no link clicking, no replying, no form filling out). Delete the suspicious email or forward it to: reportphishing@antiphishing.org.

If the email has a hint of legitimacy, don’t report it yet – rather, call the organization it is supposedly from (using a phone number listed on their Web site, not in the email) to verify that THEY are the ones trying to reach you. Also, be sure that you regularly check your online accounts and credit reports regularly, so that you can catch anything less than desirable just in case.

Fake sites that look like sites your trust, but are not (check those URLs!!)

A little common sense goes a long way, as with everything. If you see something pop up in your email that looks too good to be true (how many times can you win the lottery you never played – really?), it just might be. Stay secure and don’t let the bad guys go phishing for your information!